How many dragons are there in mahjong?

Tiles. Your Mahjong set has 166 tiles. 152 are used in play and the rest are spares. Dragons (12 tiles - 4 white dragons "Soap", 4 Green dragons, 4 red dragons).

What are dragons in Mahjong?

The Chinese name for the Dragon tiles means "three fundamental tiles" (三元牌). They are also known as the arrow tiles (箭牌). The English name ("Dragons") was an invention by Babcock. They are like wind tiles except melding them will always score bonus points regardless of the prevailing or seat wind.

Which dragons go with which suits in Mahjong?

If a hand is shown in black, it can be made up of any suit but all tiles must be of that one suit. It is important to remember that Green Dragons go with Bams, Red Dragons go with Craks and the White Dragons [Soaps] go with Dots (see Help Sheet).

What are the 4 animals in Mahjong?

Singapore mahjong differs from the mahjong played in Hong Kong as it includes four animal bonus tiles: the cat, mouse, chicken and centipede. Curiously enough, these animals come as two pairs with a predator-prey relationship: the cat and the rat, as well as the chicken and the centipede.

What are the winds and dragons in Mahjong?

The winds are east, south, west, and north, beginning with east. The dragons are red, green, and white. The white dragon has a blue or black frame on the face of the piece or in some sets is entirely blank. These tiles have no numerical sequence like the suited tiles (for example the bamboo pieces number 1 to 9).

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What are the 4 dragons in mahjong?

The Dragons

the red dragon (chun), symbolizing the middle or animal order (including humans), the green dragon (fa), symbolizing the lower or plant order of life, the white dragon (pai pan – white tile), symbolizing the higher or spirutual order of beings.

What is the rarest win in mahjong?

No prize for guessing, but the Big Four Winds/Big Four Blessings winning hand has the lowest probability in a game of mahjong. With a rare 1 in 57,856 chance of happening, this combination definitely needs to go onto your Instastory!

What are opposite dragons in Mahjong?

In some hands, the dragon is depicted in a different color to the other tiles, indicating it should NOT match the other suits being used (this is called "opposite dragon").

What is the flower rule in Mahjong?

Hong Kong Mahjong Flowers

There are only 4 flowers (1, 2, 3, and 4) and only 4 season tiles (1, 2, 3, and 4). When drawn, they are declared and a substitute tile is drawn. The flower(s) or season(s) corresponding with the winning player's wind may increase the score.

What are the 4 flowers in Mahjong?

Depending on the Mahjong set, the flowers are commonly the Plum Blossom, Iris, Bamboo, and the Chrysanthemum. These four flowers/plants represent the Four Confucian Gentlemen/women.

Is Soap a dragon in mahjong?

The white dragon tile on the left is also known as "Soap". Soaps can be used as zeroes when putting together certain hands.

What does B mean on white dragon in mahjong?

However, as time passed, the White Dragon became a standard part of play. The tile was now sometimes labeled with “B” or “P”, the first letter in the word “bai” or “pai” (depending on your transliteration system) meaning “white.”

What dragon is Wu and Wei?

Official Description. Wu & Wei are a long-bodied Mist Twister Dragon with two heads, similar to dragons from Chinese folklore. Wu (the blue head) is calm, cool, quiet, and thoughtful. Wei (the red head) is aggressive, hot, fiery, and soulful.

What do you do with dragons in mahjong?

In Mahjong Dragons are Honors tiles, sometimes helping to increase point totals (in certain ways of play). On tiles they can be figural images of that creature (the MOST fun!) or Chinese written words (characters), or sometimes the letters C, F, P or B.

What are Pungs and Kongs in Mahjong?

A Pung - a set of 3 identical tiles e.g. 3 x Red Dragons, 3 x Two circles. A Kong - a set of 4 identical tiles. e.g. 4 x Eight of Bamboos or 4 x North Winds. A Chow - a run of 3 tiles in the same suit.

Is there a secret to mahjong?

Have a clear plan of attack – Think about the direction you want to take your hand and stick with it, while also remaining flexible. Picking up tiles for the sake of it won't work, and patience will always win out in the end. If your strategy isn't working, change tactics and look for other winning possibilities.

What is the 4 of a kind rule in mahjong?

This is a kong - four of a kind. All four of a single tile = "kong." It counts as a special sort of pung. - When you have four identical tiles concealed within the hand, you have the option of melding them, declaring the four to be a kong that counts as concealed, so you can take a replacement tile.

What does mahjong mean in English?

or mah-jongg (ˌmɑːˈdʒɒŋ ) noun. a game of Chinese origin, usually played by four people, in which tiles bearing various designs are drawn and discarded until one player has an entire hand of winning combinations. Word origin. from Chinese, literally: sparrows.

Can you use a joker with a dragon in mahjong?

Absolutely! used to replace any tile (Numeral, WInd, Dragon or Flower) in any Pung, Kong, Qui.

What is it called when no one wins in mahjong?

Within each round, the winds / seating position will rotate as follows: East, South, West, North (counterclockwise). This also happens in the event of a dead hand (where nobody wins).

What is a dragon Pung in mahjong?

From Mahjong Wiki, the mahjong encyclopedia

Dragon Pung is a three identical dragon tiles. A kong of dragons also counts a dragon pung for all intents and scoring purposes.

What do you say when you win mahjong?

It is traditional when you win a game of mahjong to say: "Sik wu." In Western circles sometimes winners will instead announce "mahjong."

What is a chicken hand in mahjong?

A chicken hand comprises four sets and a pair, so it is technically a winning hand. It is fairly easy to produce quickly but scores few points. Under some rules, it can win but scores nothing. Players use the hand as a spoiler to block opponents' higher-scoring combinations.

What is the best strategy for mahjong?